1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lamp socket, a backlight assembly having a lamp socket and a display device having a lamp socket. More particularly, the present invention relates to a lamp socket for an automated and stabilized assembly process, a backlight assembly having a lamp socket and a display device having a lamp socket.
2. Description of the Related Art
A backlight assembly of a liquid crystal display (LCD) device, in general, is classified as either a direct illumination type backlight assembly or an edge illumination type backlight assembly, based on the location of the light source.
A conventional backlight assembly includes a cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL) as the light source. A direct illumination type backlight assembly having a CCFL includes a lamp socket to fix lamps on a bottom plate of a receiving container. In order to easily fix the lamps to the bottom plate, lamp sockets have been developed on the bottom plate to secure an electrode portion of the lamp to the lamp sockets.
A conventional lamp socket includes a socket housing, a power supply member and a socket cover. The power supply member electrically connects an inverter with a lead wire of the lamp. In an assembly process for the lamp socket, the power supply member is inserted into a hole formed in the socket housing, and the lead wire is inserted into a terminal of the power supply member. The socket cover is inserted into the socket body to fix the lead wire of the lamp to the lamp socket.
However, the number of elements of the lamp socket is large, and the socket cover is combined with the socket body after aligning the lamp. Thus, the assembly process is complicated.
Also, in a manufacturing process for assembling the backlight assembly, a wiring of an inverter is soldered to the lamp sockets, or a terminal of the lamp socket is soldered to the inverter.
When the inverter is electrically connected to the sockets through the soldering process, assembly time may be increased and the lamps may be damaged during the soldering process, thereby decreasing yield. In addition, if one of the inverters is defective, all of the lamps need to be removed to replace the defective inverter, thereby increasing repair time.